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Henry Warson
Henry Toussaint Warson (2 July 1918 - 26 December 1995) was a Brunanter politician, who served as Prime Minister three terms on two occasions and dominated politics throughout much of the 1950s, 1960s and 1970s. A member of the Social Democratic Party from 1939 until his death, he was one of the most important figures in postwar Brunanter politics. Warson served as government leader from 1957-1961 and 1965-1973 for 4,382 days, making him the longest-serving Prime Minister. Before his premiership, Warson served as Cape Cross city councillor and minister under Alexander Bouras, and between his first and second terms, he was House opposition leader. Following the SDP's disastrous 1973 election, he served in the Senate; he was also President of the Senate before his election to the European Parliament in 1982. Warson retired from politics in 1989. Biography Early life Warson was born in Lisbon, Portugal, where his father, Philip Warson (1886-1948), was the ambassador to Portugal. He was named after his grandfather Henry and after Haitian military leader Toussaint L'Ouverture. Warson was conscripted to the Royal Guard in 1940 and was captured during the German invasion in May 1941. He entered politics in the late 1940s. Despite the political ideology of his father, who was a conservative Catholic, and other family members, Warson joined the Social Democratic Party. Early political career Alexander Bouras in 1955]] Warson was elected a member of the Cape Cross town council in 1951 and quickly rose up in the party ranks. He was re-elected in 1954 and was the SDP's candidate for the post of mayor that year, but lost to the Liberal Party's incumbent Martin Stratton. Also in 1951, Warson also participated in the elections for the House of Representatives. He was not elected, but seated in the House from 1952 on, when a party colleague resigned due to health reasons and Warson took his place. A staunch proponent of the FLP-SDP government led by Alexander Bouras, Warson joined Bouras's third cabinet in 1953 as Minister of Public Works. He served as government minister for four years and was heavily involved with several large infrastructure projects, including an extension of the existing rail network, the construction of bridges and dams, and the basis of the divided A-leveled and B-leveled motorways in Brunant. In January 1957, Warson was elected SDP chairman and succeeded Anthony Heemskerk in this position. First term as Prime Minister The SDP received a plurality of votes, though far from enough to govern on its own. Warson proved to be a young and popular figure and his status as a wartime prisoner further endearing him to voters. Warson was forced into a government along with the Liberal Party, becoming the first Social Democrat premier. As Prime Minister, he could not achieve all he had wanted to do, as the Liberals did not support all of his proposals. Oliver Hout, the leader of the Liberals, commanded significant power and as Finance Minister was basically a deputy prime minister. One of his big issues he looked to tackle was deflation. In 1948 the value of the thaler was at 3.9025 per U.S. dollar, but by 1957 had decreased to 2.8277. This had driven up export costs significantly, and real prices were not decreasing, which did not help cost of living. In 1959 he began discussions to try and abolish capital punishment. This was backed by the Socialists and some Liberals, but Hout and most other members refused to do so. As PM, he established the Intelligence Office as Brunant's intelligence agency in 1957. The perceived divisions in the government coalition did not help Warson, especially as the Christian Democratic Union looked to take advantage and create a wedge, nearly succeeding. Warson lost out to the Centre Democrats in 1961 and was succeeded by Stefan De Vries. Warson continued in government, and was the clear opponent to De Vries in Congress. Now free of governing and a coalition, people saw the man for what he was. Years in opposition In October 1963 he was one of the invited guests of honor at a dinner marking King Johan II's Golden Jubilee. Second term as Prime Minister ]] Warson led the SDP to a plurality of votes in 1965. This time around the Liberals decreased in seats compared to 1957 and 1961, with the Socialist Left Party gaining he made a coalition with both. Warson visited the king and queen in 1965 and with his wife presented them with a special bound, unique book on History of Brunant in the Reign of Johan II. Case Biafra One of the biggest issues to his government came in 1967. He and External Affairs Minister Gerard Bergen wished to spearhead a move to back Biafran secessionists in Nigeria, following similar French actions. Word was leaked of that to the media in September 1967 and most political parties in opposition, primarily the CDU but also most Socialists opposed it. Threatened with a potential collapse of the government, he reluctantly gave up on his plans by November that year. 1968 protests The most testing event in his second term, though, would be the Protests of 1968. Fighting against the high cost and antiquated system of education, students inspired by protests in Italy took action against the Royal University of Koningstad, which saw the university shut down and become occupied by students. Police action only further inflamed the situation, and soon enough factory workers were joining the students in large, coordinated protests, leading to 5000 people occupying Liberty Plaza on 13 May. In secret memoranda, his government was prepared to send the military to deal with the protesters if things got out of hand. His defense minister, Adrian Hassel, was in favor of calling in the 6th Infantry Company from Cape Cross, but Internal Affairs Minister Anthony Milner threatened to resign if that were the case. Warson and his government pledged to reform education as well as listen to workers' grievances, and even went further to promise improved healthcare. Most protesters were willing to concede to his points and agreed to return home or to work, and by the end of May the situation was largely back to normal. Third term as Prime Minister In 1969 the SDP increased in seat numbers, but still needed the governing coalition to continue. Now in a stronger position, he pushed forward to abolish capital punishment. By this time the Liberals were much weakened, and the atmosphere was different from 10 years previous, where the post-1968 society was more liberal-minded. 62 congress members voted in favor, with the further right block led by the CDU voting against. Healthcare reform was also one of the proposals put forth after 1968, and in 1970 reforms were passed abolishing the insurance model and introducing universal, tax-funded coverage. On 12 June 1971 the government began talks with the European Communities for accession for Brunant, but progress was slow with much skepticism. In one of his final acts, he was able to see passed (86 votes to 14) the legalization of private commercial radio. Warson did not contest the elections of 1973 and was succeeded as Prime Minister by Pieter Stenman of the CDU. ]] In April 2019, a number of papers from his years in government were declassified, dating from 1965 to 1971. Key insight into Brunant in the cold war was provided, but some people were displeased at the rather poor quality of the released documents. They included key intelligence papers on the need to act against Barzona Libre, the possibility of Soviet agaents infiltrating the government, forehand knowledge of the 1971 coup against Milton Nganda in Tagog and the financial worries on a potential entry to the EC. Personal life Warson was married to Italian-Romanian actress Loredana Barone (born 1930), a young and beautiful woman. The couple had two children, Isabella (in 1953) and James (in 1959). Lori was shot at by an unknown Barzona Libre hitman while in Roodstad in 1970. She died from complication from a lodged bullet in 1972. Category:Dead people Category:Prime Ministers Category:Politicians Category:1918 births Category:Royal Guard personnel Category:Social Democratic Party Category:Congresspeople